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made her wonder once again why her grandmother wanted
her here. It was apparent Genma wasn’t concerned about a stranger stealing
things from her, so it was doubtful Genma would be worried about someone she
knew and authorized to be at her house.
    Pushing those thoughts away, she took her grandmother’s
advice and remained outdoors for a moment. The weather here was chillier than
in North Carolina. It was fall back at home, but there was only cause for a
light sweater at night.
    Standing in the great outdoors, she felt too anxious or
uneasy to sit. She followed the wraparound porch to the back of the house. Her
feet halted at the breathtaking view.  Two hundred feet beyond her
grandmother’s porch was a magnificent lake. The thick trees surrounding the
single-level cabin-style home broke just enough for an unobstructed scene of
Nature’s majesty.
    The thick redwoods created the perfect shade no matter
which way the sun was shining and the lush grass between the waterfront and the
house just made Rena want to take her shoes off and run. Run wild, free and uninhibited
by illness. She wanted to feel the wind in her hair and the sun on her face.
    “Go on down there if you want to.”
    Startled, Rena glanced over her shoulder at Genma.
“Grandma, I didn’t even hear you come out.”
    Standing at the back door that led to the living room
with a tray filled with a porcelain kettle, two cups and what appeared to be a
small basket of muffins, her grandmother smiled at her. “You were too focused
on getting those shoes off to notice anything.”
    “What?” Rena looked down and sure enough she had
somehow toed herself out of both her shoes. The charcoal grey, Mary Jane-style
flats lay skewed in front of her feet, one on top of the other. Laughing, she
said, “I didn’t even realize I was taking them off.”
    “Well they’re off now, go on out there and feel the
grass between your toes. Dip your feet in the lake if you want to.” Her
grandmother moved to a small table between two rocking chairs and set the tray
down.
    Glancing away from her grandmother, she squeezed the
rough banister beneath her fingers and stared at the sparkling water. “Won’t
the water be too cold this time of year?”
    “For some maybe. But, it won’t hurt anything to swing
your feet in it. Probably do your constitution well.”
    Looking back at her grandmother, she asked, “What about
the tea? You went to all that trouble to prepare it.”
    “It will keep.” She settled into a rocking chair. “Go
on. Everything will be fine.”
    Clutching the rail again, Rena had a picture flash in
her mind of when she was younger and the other local teens in the area would
leap over the banister—agile and free. However, that kind of antics was for
children and the healthy. Not me. Not now.
    Unable to resist the lure, she walked around the side
until she reached the steps that led from the kitchen to the yard. She noticed
a large area that appeared to be a substantial garden. Presently it was barren,
no fruits, flowers or vegetables could be seen. She knew her grandmother had
started gardening in the years since Rena and her mother had been gone.
Frequently, her grandmother would mail boxes of canned items to her after Rena
moved out of her mother’s house.
    People in the city didn’t have gardens and Rena looked
forward to feeling better and helping her grandmother plant some things before
she returned to the East Coast. Maybe by the time her grandmother got back from
whatever trip she was taking.
    Walking through the thick grass, she loved hearing the
rustling of the blades of grass caused by her steps and feeling the soft, cool
prickles too. Rushing to the water, she only had to break her stride a few
times because her stomach turned and knotted, but she refused to stop.
    The planks of the dock were smooth and warm from the
fall sun as her feet slapped against them. Once she arrived at the end of the
dock, she sat and leaned against one of the two